Near-Infrared BODIPY To Monitor Cellular

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Article Cite This: ACS Sens. 2018, 3, 1347−1353

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A Photoactivatable Far-Red/Near-Infrared BODIPY To Monitor Cellular Dynamics in Vivo Lorenzo Sansalone,† Sicheng Tang,† Jaume Garcia-Amorós,§ Yang Zhang,† Santi Nonell,¶ James D. Baker,† Burjor Captain,† and Françisco M. Raymo*,† †

ACS Sens. 2018.3:1347-1353. Downloaded from pubs.acs.org by 79.110.18.85 on 09/01/18. For personal use only.

Laboratory for Molecular Photonics, Departments of Biology and Chemistry, University of Miami, 1301 Memorial Drive, Coral Gables, Florida 33146-0431, United States § Grup de Materials Orgànics, Institut de Nanociència i Nanotecnologia (IN2UB), Departament de Química Inorgànica i Orgànica (Secció de Química Orgànica), Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franqués 1, E-08028, Barcelona, Spain ¶ Institut Químic de Sarrià, Universitat Ramon Llull, Via Augusta 390, E-08017, Barcelona, Spain S Supporting Information *

ABSTRACT: A mechanism to photoactivate far-red/near-infrared fluorescence with infinite contrast and under mild visible illumination was designed around the photophysical properties of borondipyrromethene (BODIPY) dyes and the photochemical behavior of oxazine heterocycles. Specifically, the photoinduced and irreversible cleavage of an oxazine ring with a laser line at 405 nm extends the electronic conjugation of a BODIPY chromophore over a 3H-indole auxochrome with a 2-(4-methoxyphenyl)ethenyl substituent in position 5. This structural transformation shifts bathochromically the main absorption band of the BODIPY component to allow the selective excitation of the photochemical product with a laser line of 633 nm and produce fluorescence between 600 and 850 nm. This combination of activation, excitation, and emission wavelengths permits the visualization of the cellular blastoderm of developing Drosophila melanogaster embryos with optimal contrast and essentially no autofluorescence from the biological specimen. Furthermore, the sequential acquisition of images, after the photoactivation event, enables the tracking of individual cells within the embryos in real time. Thus, our structural design and operating principles for the photoactivation of far-red/near-infrared fluorescence can evolve into invaluable probes to monitor cellular dynamics in vivo. KEYWORDS: BODIPY, fluorescence, Drosophila melanogaster, imaging, NIR dyes, photoactivatable fluorophores, photocages, TICT

T

powerful tool to investigate a diversity of specimens with spatiotemporal control.14−19 Indeed, the ability to switch fluorescence on exclusively after a photochemical reaction offers the opportunity to generate an emissive species in any region of a given sample of interest at a specific interval of time. In turn, the control of light emission in space and time permits the monitoring of dynamic events20−23 and the overcoming of diffraction24−26 with the sequential acquisition of fluorescence images. The identification of viable strategies to photoactivate BODIPY fluorescence efficiently would, therefore, have significant implications in these emerging bioimaging methodologies by providing molecular probes with unrivaled synthetic and photophysical characteristics. The photoactivatable BODIPYs developed so far rely on the photoinduced disconnection of a quenching component from the emissive chromophore.9−13 Generally, excitation of the

he BODIPY chromophore is a versatile platform for the construction of fluorescent probes for bioimaging and biosensing applications.1−8 Efficient and relatively simple synthetic procedures for the preparation of this heterocyclic scaffold, as well as for the introduction of substituents on its boron center and pyrrole rings, are well established. Additionally, BODIPY chromophores absorb in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum with large molar absorption coefficients and, when the conformational freedom of their substituents is restricted, emit with large fluorescence quantum yields. Furthermore, their absorption and emission bands can be shifted bathochromically into the far-red/near-infrared region, to overcome the characteristic autofluorescence of biological samples, with appropriate structural modifications of the heterocyclic platform aimed at extending electronic conjugation. In spite of the attractive combination of synthetic accessibility and outstanding photophysical properties, structural designs for the photochemical activation of their fluorescence remain limited to a few representative examples.9−13 Yet, photoactivatable fluorophores are becoming a © 2018 American Chemical Society

Received: March 28, 2018 Accepted: June 4, 2018 Published: June 4, 2018 1347

DOI: 10.1021/acssensors.8b00262 ACS Sens. 2018, 3, 1347−1353

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ACS Sensors chromophore at an appropriate wavelength (λEx) encourages the transfer of an electron to or from the quencher. This process deactivates the excited chromophore nonradiatively to decrease drastically its fluorescence quantum yield. Illumination at a suitable activation wavelength (λAc) cleaves the quencher from the chromophore. The physical separation of the two prevents electron transfer and allows the chromophore to deactivate radiatively after excitation. The overall result is the detection of intense fluorescence only if the sample is illuminated at λEx af ter irradiation at λAc. However, unitary quenching efficiencies are hard, if at all possible, to achieve in the initial state and the emission intensity only increases from a low to a high value, rather than switching from off to on. In search of strategies to activate BODIPY fluorescence with infinite contrast, our laboratories developed an alternative mechanism to switch the emission of these compounds.27−30 It is based on the attachment of a photoswitchable auxochrome to the BODIPY chromophore, which enables the latter to absorb at λEx exclusively after illumination at λAc. The selective excitation of the photochemical product translates into fluorescence activation with contrast levels that are impossible to achieve with mechanisms based on quenching. Nonetheless, the absorption and emission bands of the photoactivatable BODIPYs based on this mechanism are confined within the visible region. The extension of these operating principles to activate fluorescence in the far-red/near-infrared portion of the electromagnetic spectrum instead would provide the opportunity to avoid the autofluorescence of biological samples and would be especially valuable for possible bioimaging applications in vivo. These considerations prompted us to explore structural modifications of our original design aimed at extending the electronic conjugation of the BODIPY platform and shifting bathochromically its absorption and emission bands. This article reports the synthesis and photophysical characterization of these emissive compounds, the photoactivation of the far-red/near-infrared fluorescence of a representative member of these extended BODIPYs and its application to monitor cellular dynamics in developing embryos.

Figure 1. Normalized absorption and emission (λEx = 560 nm) spectra of MeCN solutions (10 μM) of either 12 (a) or 5 (b and c) at 20 °C.

Table 1. Wavelengths at the Absorption (λAb) and Emission (λEm) Maxima, Stoke’s Shift (Δλ), Absorbance (A633) at 633 nm Reported Relative to That at λAb, and Fluorescence Quantum Yield (ϕF) of 3−12 in Aerated MeCN at 20 °Ca

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RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Design, Synthesis, and Structural Characterization. The operating principles to activate the fluorescence of our original photoactivatable BODIPY (1 in Figure 1) relied on the irreversible cleavage of a 2H,4H-[1,3]oxazine heterocycle upon illumination at λAc.27 This photochemical reaction extends the electronic delocalization of the BODIPY chromophore over the adjacent 3H-indole auxochrome in the resulting product (3 in Figure 1). Concomitantly, the S0 → S1 absorption shifts bathochromically to allow the excitation of 3 at a λEx where 1 cannot absorb and, hence, the activation of fluorescence with infinite contrast. However, the absorption and emission bands of the photogenerated fluorophore remain in the visible region with maxima at 588 and 602 nm (λAb and λEm in Table 1) respectively in acetonitrile solution. In principle, the π-system of 3 can be extended even further with the attachment of appropriate substituents to position 5 of the 3H-indole heterocycle. Such a structural transformation should shift bathochromically the absorption and emission bands of the BODIPY chromophore and, possibly, enable the photoactivation of far-red/near-infrared fluorescence. These considerations suggested the introduction of either ethenyl (5− 7 in Figure 1 and Table 1) or ethynyl (8−11 in Table 1) groups

3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

λAb (nm)

λEm (nm)

Δλ (nm)

A633 (%)

ϕF

588 594 605 605 600 600 600 603 605

602 606 652 623 612 618 617 614 

14 12 47 18 12 18 17 11 

1 7 37 33 53 21 14 35 31

0.50 0.52 0.04 0.09 0.007 0.19 0.15 0.004 

a

The data for 3 and 8 are literature values (refs 27,28). The values of ϕF for 4−11 were determined against a MeCN solution of 3.

on this particular position. The resulting compounds were synthesized in one−five steps from known precursors (Figures 1348


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ACS Sensors S1−S7) and their structural identity was confirmed by electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (EISMS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometry. Additionally, single crystals suitable for X-ray diffraction analysis (Table S1) could be obtained in the case of 5. The resulting structure (Figure 2) confirms the presence of a 2-(4-methoxyphenyl)-

Figure 2. ORTEP (50% thermal ellipsoid probability rendered by using POV-Ray) representation of the geometry adopted by 5 in a single crystal [carbon (gray), oxygen (red), nitrogen (blue), boron (gold), fluorine (green)].

ethenyl group in position 5 of the 3H-indole heterocycle with a dihedral angle about the intervening [C−C] bond of 16°. Similarly, the BODIPY chromophore is twisted by 18° about the [C−C] bond connecting it to the adjacent olefinic bridge. The [CC] bond between the BODIPY chromophore and the 3H-indole auxochrome as well as the one connecting this heterocycle to the 4,4′-phenylene ring adopt trans configurations. Consistently with this geometrical arrangement about both [CC] bonds, the 1H NMR spectrum of 5, recorded in deuterated chloroform, reveals AB systems for the olefinic protons with coupling constants greater than 16 Hz. This particular compound was further functionalized with a 2H,4H[1,3]oxazine heterocycle in an additional synthetic step (Figure S8) to generate an analog (12 in Figure 1) of 1 with extended π-conjugation. Once again, the structural identity of the target molecule was confirmed by EISMS and NMR spectrometry. Photochemical and Photophysical Properties. The absorption and emission spectra (Figures S9−S18) of 3−11 confirm that the attachment of a π-system to position 5 of the 3H-indole auxochrome shifts bathochromically the bands of the BODIPY chromophore. The largest shifts are observed for 5 (b and c in Figure 1), which has absorption and emission maxima at 605 and 652 nm (λAb and λEm in Table 1), respectively, in acetonitrile. Consistently with significant electronic communication along the extended π-system of these molecules, the absorption spectrum of 5 differs from the sum of the spectra of the parent system (3) and 4-methoxystyrene (Figure S21). However, π-substitution appears to facilitate the nonradiative deactivation of the excited BODIPY in this particular solvent. As a result, the fluorescence quantum yield (ϕF in Table 1) of 5−11 is significantly lower than that of 3. Additionally, the conformational freedom about the four [C−C] bonds present along the extended π-system of these compounds translates into the coexistence of multiple conformations in solution to impose wavelength dependence on the excitation spectra (Figure S22). The transition from acetonitrile to toluene has negligible influence on the absorption and emission spectra of 3, but has a pronounced effect on those of 5 (Figure 3). Specifically, the fluorescence quantum yield (ϕF in Table 2) of 5 increases from 0.04 in acetonitrile31 to 0.26 in toluene and raises further to 0.31 in hexane. In fact, both the absorption and emission

Figure 3. Absorption and emission (λEx = 560 nm) spectra of MeCN and PhMe solutions (10 μM) of either 3 or 5 at 20 °C.

Table 2. Wavelengths at the Absorption (λAb) and Emission (λEm) Maxima, Stoke’s Shift (Δλ), Absorbance (A633) at 633 nm Reported Relative to That at λAb, Fluorescence Quantum Yield (ϕF) and Activation Quantum Yield (ϕA) of 5 and 12 in Aerated Solutions at 20 °Ca

5

12

solvent

λAb (nm)

λEm (nm)

Δλ (nm)

A633 (%)

ϕF

ϕA (10−4)

MeCN PhMe H2O Hexane MeCN PhMe H2O

605 619 614 612 548 554 551

640 640 628 629 581 566 560

35 21 14 17 33 12 9

37 64 63 30 0.7 0.8 1.6

0.04 0.26 0.10 0.31 0.004 0.04 0.11

    0.3 4.2 7.9

a The values of ϕF were determined against a MeCN solution of 3. Those of ϕA were determined against a ferrioxalate actinometer. The measurements in H2O were performed in the presence of 13.

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S31) of 5 can be postulated to involve (1) a vertical transition to a locally excited (LE) state, (2) the adiabatic population of the TICT state in a solvent with high polarity and low viscosity, and (3) the predominant nonradiative decay of the TICT state back to the ground state. Furthermore, the vertical energy (Table S3) calculated for the TICT state is larger than that estimated for the LE state, in agreement with the hypsochromic shift observed in the time-resolved emission spectra (Figure S29). The fusion of a 2H,4H-[1,3]oxazine heterocycle on the 3Hindole fragment of 5 to generate 12 interrupts electronic conjugation along the extended π-system of the former. As a result, the main BODIPY absorption shifts from 605 to 548 nm (λAb in Table 2, a and b in Figure 1) in acetonitrile with this structural transformation. The resulting compound, however, is essentially not emissive under these experimental conditions (ϕF in Table 2, Figure S19). The relatively electron rich 3Hindole heterocycle is, presumably, donating an electron to the excited BODIPY chromophore, preventing its radiative deactivation. Indeed, cyclic voltammograms (Figure S32) of 12 suggest this photoinduced electron transfer process to be exergonic with a free-energy change of −0.44 eV.35 Illumination of 12 at a λAc where its 2-nitrobenzyl fragment absorbs cleaves the 2H,4H-[1,3]oxazine heterocycle irreversibly to produce 2 and 5, in agreement with the photochemical behavior of the parent system (1).27 Consistently, absorption spectra (Figure 4), recorded sequentially during the photolytic

spectra of this compound display a significant solvent dependence (Figure S24). The corresponding Lippert−Mataga plot (Figure S24), however, shows a nonlinear dependence of Stoke’s shift on the orientation polarizability. This trend is indicative of the occurrence of a process in the excited state, in addition to solvent relaxation. Furthermore, the emission intensity of 5 decreases monotonically with temperature in viscous media (Figure S25), suggesting that a pronounced geometrical change is responsible for promoting the nonradiative decay of the excited state. The emission intensity of 3 decays monoexponentially in acetonitrile and toluene (Figure S27) with a lifetime of 5.3 ns (Table S2) in both instances. That of 5 decays monoexponentially in toluene (Figure S28) with a lifetime of 1.9 ns and biexponentially in acetonitrile with an average lifetime of 0.7 ns. Time-resolved spectra further reveal the emission band of 5 to shift from 661 to 618 nm (Figure S29) within 5 ns from excitation in acetonitrile. Global analysis of the fluorescence decays shows the component at 661 nm to have a lifetime of 0.6 ns (96%) and that at 618 nm to have a lifetime of 3.7 ns (4%). Thus, excitation of 5 results in the adiabatic formation of a weakly emissive species with fast kinetics in acetonitrile. A decrease in solvent polarity hinders the formation of this species and both fluorescence lifetime and quantum yield increase in toluene. Furthermore, this process does not occur in 3, suggesting that it must be associated with the presence of a 2(4-methoxyphenyl)ethenyl substituent on the 3H-indole heterocycle of 5. The observed increase in fluorescence quantum yield with an increase in viscosity and a decrease in polarity suggests that the process occurring upon excitation of 5 is a conformational change leading to the formation of a twisted intramolecular charge transfer (TICT) state.32 In principle, rotation about any one of the four [C−C] bonds flanking the two olefinic bridges of 5 should disrupt electronic conjugation along the extended π-system and possibly populate a TICT state. Indeed, density functional theory33 (DFT) calculations on an optimized geometry of 5 reveal the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) and the lowest unoccupied molecular orbital (LUMO) to extend over the entire π-platform (Figure S30). Rotation of the BODIPY chromophore about the [C−C] bond connecting it to the adjacent olefinic bridge disrupts conjugation and localizes the HOMO on the substituted 3Hindole auxochrome and the LUMO on the BODIPY chromophore (Figure S30). Frequency calculations on the corresponding transition state estimate the free-energy barrier for this conformational change to be only 6.08 kcal mol−1 in acetonitrile, suggesting that the twisted geometry is accessible with fast kinetics at ambient temperature. Time-dependent (TD) DFT34 calculations (Table S3) on this particular structure further indicate that the first-singlet excited state is predominantly associated with the HOMO localized on one fragment and the LUMO localized on the other has a vertical energy of 2.67 eV and is essentially forbidden with an oscillator strength of 0.02. These observations suggest that this species is the TICT state governing the excitation dynamics of 5. Indeed, rotation about any of the other three [C−C] bonds also disrupts electronic conjugation, but localizes both HOMO and LUMO on the BODIPY chromophore. Consistently, TD DFT calculations on the corresponding geometries reveal the vertical transitions to the first singlet-excited state to have the large oscillator strengths characteristic of BODIPY excitation. On the basis of these considerations, the excitation dynamics (Figure

Figure 4. Absorption spectra and HPLC traces of a PhMe solution (20 μM) of 12 recorded before and after irradiation (350 nm, 4.2 mW cm−2) at 20 °C. 1350


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properties of the photochemical product allow excitation (633 nm) and detection (700−800 nm) conditions that ensure no autofluorescence from the biological specimen. Magnifications (Figure 6, Video S1) of the activated region reveal the localization of the rather hydrophobic fluorescent probes in the membranes of the many cells in the blastoderm. These additional images were collected sequentially over the course of 9 min after activation. Their comparison shows that the visualized cells translocate gradually in the antero → postero direction. For example, the movement of one cell (yellow arrow in Figure 6) relative to a reference marker (dotted line in Figure 6) can be tracked in time with this image acquisition protocol.

transformation in toluene, reveal a decrease in the BODIPY absorption of 12 with the concomitant appearance and growth of the characteristic band of 5. Similarly, the corresponding emission spectra (inset of Figure 4) show the developing fluorescence of the photochemical product and high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) traces (Figure 4) further confirm the gradual conversion of 12 into 5. Analysis of the temporal evolution of the absorbance for the product indicates the quantum yield (ϕA in Table 2) for this photochemical transformation to be 4.2 × 10−4 under these experimental conditions. The very same process can be implemented also in aqueous environment with the aid of an amphiphilic polymer (13 in Table 2). Indeed, 12 is relatively hydrophobic and, essentially, insoluble in water. However, it readily dissolves in the presence of sufficient amounts of 13 (Figure S20), in analogy to the behavior of the parent system (1).27 Illumination of the resulting solution at an appropriate λAc also converts 12 into 2 and 5 with spectral changes (Figure S26) analogous to those detected in organic solution and a ϕA of 7.9 × 10−4 (Table 2). Fluorescence Imaging. The structural transformation associated with the photochemical conversion of 12 into 5 shifts bathochromically the BODIPY absorption (a and b in Figure 1, Figure 4) to allow the selective excitation of the product and the activation of significant emission in the far-red/ near-infrared region (c in Figure 1, inset of Figure 4). The very same process can be reproduced within poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) films and visualized with the aid of a confocal laser-scanning microscope. Specifically, images (Figure S33) of a PMMA film, doped with 12, recorded before and after illumination at λAc of a square at the center of the imaging field clearly reveal fluorescence activation with optimal contrast. The visible wavelength (405 nm) and low power (

Near-Infrared BODIPY To Monitor Cellular

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